Page 34 of Everything's Better With You
Joe climbed onto his soon-to-be-replaced bed and checked his email. His agent wanted updates on everything and let him know that he’d gotten several calls about him. There were still opportunities for him, which made his current situation feel all the more temporary. If the right show came along, could he resist temptation to hit the road again?
No, he’d made a commitment and he needed to fulfill it. He’d always wanted to be a part of something bigger, to do something that meant something. He had a chance to do that here.
Joe woke to the dulcet droning of tired football players trudging down the steps with less gusto than the previous day. He figured Leslie had tired them out and they weren’t anxious to find out what he had in store for them bright and early. All Joe had on his agenda was car shopping with Leslie, but he couldn’t sit still and wait around. He had his morning shake, did his stretches, and then made his way into the common room.
It really was big enough for everything except stunting, so he decided to make himself comfortable. He took measurements of the walls and ordered mirrors and barres after getting email confirmation from Barry that there was money to pay for that. Then he set about moving the furniture into the hallway, which he was doing when Matty came out in low-slung holey pajama pants and a T-shirt so ripped on the sides that it was basically a neckline with cotton fringe.
“Hey there, Coach. Need a hand?”
The proud part of Joe wanted to say, “I’ve got this,” despite the fact his back was already killing him, but the saner side prevailed.
“That would be great, thank you. We’re going to be using this space for practices and classes, so I apologize in advance if it gets a bit noisy in here.”
Matty smirked. “That’s where noise-cancelling headphones come in handy, bruh.” He gave Joe a hang loose sign and Joe tried to hide his judgy thoughts.
“Where are you from, Matty?” he asked as they both picked up the ends of a long coffee table built solidly sometime in the 1960s. He fully expected Orange County or Florida.
“Denver,” he said and Joe nodded, hiding his smile. “Originally. But I did live in Guam, Germany, and the Philippines as a kid.”
“Oh, well, that sounds like quite an experience.” Interesting.
They set the table down and Matty stretched out his back, rubbing his six pack. If Joe didn’t know better, he’d think Matty was trying to flirt with him.
“Yeah. Dad was a military contractor. Thankfully, I was already graduated from high school when he moved to Iraq. Mom stayed in Denver.”
They moved a few other big pieces, including the couches, and once the floor was cleared, Joe was pleased with the space.
“This is going to be great,” he said. “Thank you for your help.”
“Absolutely,” Matty said, clapping him on the shoulder. “Means I can skip lifting today. I’m headed out for my run before the weather gets too hot. That’s one thing I can’t stand about this place. The humidity.” He shook his head, gave a little salute, and then headed out the front doors, leaving Joe to stare at the nasty floor. College kids were not known to be the cleanest, but the amount of gunk that had been hiding under the furniture was unbelievable. And probably dated back to his time as a student.
An hour later he heard the door open, but he was focused on the second to last patch of truly disgusting wood. He figured it was Matty so he didn’t bother getting up off his hands and knees.
“What the hell are you doing, Twinkle Toes? We’ve got people to do that.”
Joe pushed himself up and sat painfully on his haunches.
“And where are those people? Preparing the school for the kids, right? It’s fine.”
Itsowasn’t fine. He hadn’t paid attention to how long he’d been in that position, and when he tried to stand up, his lower back seized up and his knees gave out. So he stayed on his hands and knees hoping Leslie wouldn’t notice he was stuck.
“Joe for real, come on. Let me at least have the Terrible Two come over.”
“It’s fine,” Joe answered through gritted teeth, breathing through a spasm. He turned his face away from Leslie and counted to ten, hoping the spasms would stop. When they eventually did, he straightened his legs and kept a downward dog position for a few minutes to stretch out his legs and then slowly rolled up, grateful his back had loosened up. He put on his biggest showbiz smile and flicked his bangs out of his eyes. “Are you done with practice already?”
Leslie frowned and looked at his watch. “It’s almost noon. I tried texting you, but you didn’t answer. Now I know why.” His eyes softened. “Have you been working this whole time?”
Joe rubbed the sweat from his face with his forearm and laughed a little harder than was called for to be sure he didn’t cry. “Time flies when you’re having the best time of your life.”
“Right. Listen, if you want me to stay and help you, we can get your car tomorrow—”
“No way. Let me just take a quick shower and I’ll be ready. Come on in, I’ll be quick.”
“You sure?”
Joe breezed past him, afraid if he stopped moving he’d stiffen up again, and not in any sort of pleasurable way.
“Yeah, I’m almost done with this floor,” he said as he walked into his apartment, Leslie hot on his heels. “And I bought some heavy-duty floor wax, so once I get the rest of the fossilized gum off the floor—I really hope that’s all it is. I’m afraid to think of what else might’ve been under those couches—anyway, I can get a nice coating down on the floor.” He pulled off his shirt and grabbed his jug of ice water, downing half of it. He set the metal bottle down hard on the counter and was going tocontinue telling Leslie his plan, but Leslie’s jaw was nearly resting on the counter.
